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Athletes’ Olympic dining room a Slow Food court like no other

www.gdaguru.com today reports that the athletes’ dining room in the Olympic village is a food court like no other, offering the world’s elite athletes healthy, hearty food and fuel, 24 hours a day — and doing it the Slow Food way. 05-08-2012

The milk is organic, the coffee free-trade and eggs free-range. The chicken, which is flying off the grill as athletes opt for basic protein, carries Britain’s “Freedom Food” label, certified by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals as meeting its strict animal welfare standards.

Recycling and compost bins proliferate and where possible, local farmers have grown the produce. The seafood part of Britain’s famous fish and chips is made from sustainably caught fish.

Chief Olympic caterer Jan Matthews and her crew of chefs from around the world can dish up for the more than 24,000 athletes, coaches and team officials from 200-plus countries who pass through her dining room on any given day. Matthews says:

“Our view was that if we got good ingredients and we had good chefs, we would get great food.”

She acknowledges the incongruity of McDonald’s being present in her Slow Food-inspired dining room, but says no one is forcing anyone to eat it..... besides, McDonald’s in recent years has changed its menu to reflect demands for healthier food.